Author Gail Gauthier's Reflections On Children's Books, Writing, And The World of Children's Publishing

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

The Detail Tipping Point

I've been struggling with a chapter this week, totally bogged down with a dinner scene. The problem, I finally realized late today, is that I'm loving a lot of unnecessary details. They're fun, but they don't support anything.

Details are what make a piece of writing interesting. You need details to support character, scene, point of view, theme, and plot, all of which support story. The problem, as I see it, comes about when a writer (this writer) falls in love with the details of a character or a scene or someone's point of view and just spins them, getting deeper and deeper into detail that eventually become all about those details instead of about the story.

I am hoping this will help me move on when I get back to work on Friday.

About Me

I'm the author of eight books for children and young adults, all published by G.P. Putnam's Sons. I've republished Saving the Planet & Stuff as an eBook. Now I have experience wading in both the traditional and self-publishing pools. My essays have been published at The Millions and Literary Mama, and my short stories at Alimentum and Cricket. I have been blogging at Original Content for eleven years.